Wee Little Stark

chapter 4

hapter 13

Notes:

thanks again for all the love you guys are sending my way!

head's up, there's some violence toward the end of the chapter. it's detailed but not graphic if that makes sense? like i'm not going to wax poetic about gory details like one of the Saw movies.

Chapter Text

Tony watched in frozen horror as Stane's hand moved in front of his face, dropping onto the arc reactor, twisting Tony's only tie to life free from his chest with a sick pop!

The sheer agony in his chest was only compounded on by the pain of Stane's betrayal, his worry about Pepper, and his devastating need to know that Darcy was safe. As if he could read Tony's mind, Stane paused in his evil monologuing with a roguish smile.

"Ah, yes, Miss Stark! Such a smart girl, if a bit reluctant to carry out her destiny as a Stark. No worries, Tony I've left her out of this, for the moment. I have no quarrel with your daughter." Stane paused as he stood, wiping his shoulders of imaginary dust and smiling down at a paralyzed Tony, "She could prove most useful to me, after all. So once this is over, I'll retrieve her from where I had her sent and get started on making her my perfect little ally."

Tony's body recoiled at Stane's words, fighting against his bonds to that he could protect his baby girl from this monster's hands. He continued to struggle with more vigor when Stane gave him a filthy wink as he turned on his heel, Tony's life in his dirty hands.

Moments later Tony found himself stumbling down the mansion steps to his lab, every few feet falling and earning another bruise that paled in comparison to the burning ache radiating from the hole in his chest. He couldn't let it stop him, even as he was brought to his knees in pain, crawling to his destination. He let thoughts of Darcy fuel him over to the shelves, tears pouring from his eyes his hands missed their target, but trying again and again. His baby girl needed him. He can't fail her now.

Even as his determination grew, black spots danced across his vision as he reached a final time for his first arc reactor Pepper had displayed on the shelf. Tony could feel the moment his body surrendered, wanting nothing more than to fall under the spell of the pain and sleep. He was saved though, by DUM-E.

Beautiful, wonderful, stupid DUM-E who was beeping his concerns at Tony as he held out the glass container. Choking on a sob as he grabbed the box from DUM-E's claw, hope filled Tony's chest for the smallest of moments.

Slamming the glass on the floor to free his only chance at stopping Stane and saving his kid, Tony thought back, wondering if there was a way he could've stopped this from happening or if they were all just screwed the moment he set foot back in the states.

Tony choked on sand as he crash landed, the suit breaking around him as he rolled down a sand dune. Once the bottom of the hill he spent a minute or three laughing hysterically, clutching his ribs.

"It fucking worked!" He was breathless, in pain, and desperately trying not to think of Yinsen's final moments that gave him the window to fly from the cave they were being held in.

His laughter trickled off from full-bellied guffaws to small barely-there chuckles, stopping completely as he felt the shockwave from the fortress in the cave being blown sky-high.

Sobered once more, Tony slowly pulled himself so that he could sit up, pulling the last bits of the metal suit off his body. He stood with his hands on his hips, looking around the desert that appeared to be identical no matter which way he looked. Turning to peer over his shoulder, Tony could see the pieces of the metal suit leading away from him like a trail.

"Right. Not that way then."

He took a deep inhale that he immediately regretted, coughing up what felt like way too much sand to be any good for him, Tony chose the opposite direction of his little metal crumb trail, and began to walk.

Tony could feel Rhodey's eyes on him, heavy and concerned and in no way subtle.

"Rhodey, I'm okay, gotta dial back the Bambi eyes for me," he mumbled at his friend. He reached out an arm as if to pat his friend on the shoulder, but was halted in his movement from the multitude of IV's.

"You are not okay, Tony," Rhodey growled, "You were missing for three months, theres a crater where there used to be a mountain, and there is something glowing in your goddamn chest! Not okay!"

Tony's smile turned into a grimace as the jet hit some turbulence, but forced it back on his face after the jostle.

"Aww, knew you loved me, big guy."

"Shut the fuck up and get some sleep."

It wasn't until they were nearing US airspace that Tony could build up the courage to ask about Darcy.

Wary of the many sets of ears around him, Tony nudged Rhodey in the seat next to him until his friend could see the seriousness in his eyes.

"How's everything back home? All the bots safe and sound?"

Understanding Tony's veiled words, Rhodey smiled. "Yeah man, all the bot's are okay. There was some trouble for a bit, but Happy and Pepper had it covered. Happy brought down his cat for a bit because the bot's needed some company, apparently."

Tony raised his eyebrow at his friend, who only shrugged in response. Huh, imagine that. I'll have to send Logan a bottle of scotch and a pack of Cubans in thanks.

Seeing Pepper's red-rimmed eyes as he stepped off the plane both broke his heart and made him smile.

"Hmmm. Your eyes are red. Tears for your long lost boss?" He teased.

"Tears of joy. I hate job hunting."

Rolling his eyes behind his sunglasses, Tony scoffed, "Yeah, well, vacation's over."

Ignoring his jab, Pepper reached into her purse and held out her phone.

"Before we head to the press conference, I believe there is an important call for you to make, Mr. Stark."

Tentatively reaching out his hand (he doesn't like being handed stuff, sue him), Tony pulled the phone from her grasp, ignoring the stirring in his gut as their fingers brushed.

Focus,Tony, he chastised himself, following Pepper as she led her way to a limo nearby and putting the phone to his ear.

He knew that Darcy was going to scream and cry at him, he just didn't know which one he wanted first.

"Hello?" he cringed at the deep inhale that he heard across the line.

"YOU ABSOLUTE JACKASS! DO YOU KNOW HOW WORRIED SICK I'VE BEEN? YOU'VE BEEN GONE FORMONTHS! I THOUGHT YOU WERE DEAD!" His baby girl's furious yells became more garbled with tears as she continued, and Tony was thankful for the privacy of the limo when the door closed behind him.

"I am so, so sorry, Bot. I can't even begin to tell you how sorry I am that you were scared and hurting."

His heart shattered as Darcy just sobbed on the phone, seeming unable to form words for the moment.

"I thought of you every single day, sweetheart. That's how I was able to get myself out, thinking of you. You, Pepper, Rhodey and Happy. JARVIS and the bots too, I guess."

Darcy's sobs were interrupted by a watery chuckle at his teasing tone, knowing full well that he did love JARVIS and the bots like they were another set of kids.

"Come home?" Tony's eyes closed at the sound of her pained whisper, Darcy sounding like that scared two-year-old he first met rather than his eighteen-year-old firecracker of a daughter.

"Yeah, Darcy, I'm comin' home real soon."

Tony sat down on the mansion's couch, ice pack held to his head as he watched Pepper and Darcy angrily pace in front of him.

He cringed when he remembered Pepper catching him with the bots as he tried to get out of the test suit. The look on her face promised that there would be hell to pay for keeping this secret.

Tony watched his two favorite women wear holes in the floor, smiling at the differences between the two. Pepper was the embodiment of grace, her designer suit pristine even in her distress, her heels making little echoing click click clicks on each determined step as she lectured him about how reckless he was being.

Darcy was almost the opposite of the tall redhead. Her short and curvy stature shuffling across the floor in her bunny slippers, making little shh shh shh noises in time with Pepper's clicking. Her hands were flailing about like they always did when she was agitated, but the image was made even more endearing by the fact her hands were hidden in the sleeves of the over-sized Air Force hoodie she was wearing, undoubtedly stolen from Rhodey.

Looking closer at his kid's face, Tony could see more than just worry there like he saw with Pepper. Narrowing his eyes, he began to laugh. She's trying to fight wanting to know more about the suit. Meeting the gazes of both fierce women as they came to a stop at his outburst, he cocked an eyebrow at Darcy.

"So, spawn of mine, wanna see the schematics?"

Darcy's curiosity broke through in the form a huge smile on her face, and she began nodding so quickly her thick-framed glasses threatened to slide down her nose.

Pepper groaned, loudly, and practically ran to the kitchen mumbling about goddamn Starks and their inability to leave well enough alone and needing a bottle of wine the entire way.

Tony couldn't bring himself to care, he had a metal suit to show his kid.

They didn't understand. They couldn't, Tony realized. His family hadn't seen what destruction his company, his life, had brought down on so many innocent people. Screw Stane and his weapons-loving bullshit. He couldn't see it then, but after months of torture Tony could see clearly just what type of poison Stane truly was. Tony knew he had to drain the bad blood out.

He had purpose, now. A mission to keep this world safe, Darcy's world. He wouldn't let her spend her life with blood on her hands that she got just from holding his. His daughter was too good, far too good for the likes of him and the life he was leading.

But he'd be better. For Darcy. He'd clean up his act and dismantle every weapon he ever made and start new.

He'd protect Darcy, and better the world to do so.

It was with this determination that Tony used to fuel his fight with Stane in the streets of California. Each blow dealt was another reminder to him that he had a promise to keep. Each time Stane struck him down told him that he had so much to make up for, that his mission was far from over.

Don't worry, baby girl, he thought as dodged a car Stane threw his way, I'll take this bastard down, I'll make things right.

It wasn't until shortly later, when he was screaming at Pepper to throw the switch so the giant arc reactor could blow Stane to bits, that he realized that he may not get enough time to be better for his daughter. Staring at the night sky as he felt the power surging in the room beneath him, he only hoped that Darcy knew that he had tried.

Darcy woke up with a groan, the feel of dried blood on the side of her face and cold concrete under her back where she lay. Before she even opened her eyes she took stock of her body and any potential injuries. Finding none, Darcy cracked open an eye, slowly taking in her surroundings.

She seemed to be in some sort of empty warehouse (she could practically hear her Dad scoff at the cliché). The place was clearly old and not well taken care of, judging by the exposed wires that would sometimes spark dangerously. The heavy industrial lights above would flicker in their brightness, but otherwise remained on. Using her powers Darcy was able to tell that the warehouse was still getting access to a decent amount of power despite its abandoned nature. Good, that could come in handy. That was about all she could tell without moving from her spot, though, so with reluctance she decided to look around fully.

When she opened her other eye and gently turned her head to her left, she could see about ten men arranged in a semi-circle around her spot on the floor. She squinted through her glasses, eyes flying open with shock when she got a better look.

Ten men with a fuck-ton of guns and a serious addiction to gym memberships. Damn.

Darcy sighed and began to sit up which drew the attention of all the goons, some tightening their hands on their weapons, others chuckling and leering at her.

Oh HELL no, Pepper didn't raise no damsel in distress.

One man stepped away from the center of the group, thus earning him the much desired title of Goon-1, a smarmy look on his face. Darcy took the few moments she had before he got within range to search for JARVIS in the back of her head.

Bro? I'm in a bit of a bind and I could use some assistance.

The AI flooded her with relief, quickly overwhelmed by anxiety and worry so thick it made Darcy gag.

Darcy! You are in danger, he paused as she sent him a mental image of her current predicament along with a feeling that translated closely to 'no, shit, Sherlock.'

Her brother continued, filing away the face of each man for later use, Stane attacked Sir, Darcy. Shortly after I noticed you went offline at the coffee shop Stane arrived at the mansion, cutting off my servers temporarily, and taking the arc reactor from Sir.

Darcy felt rage and worry battle for dominance in her small body, before shunting them both to the side when JARVIS reassured her that her Dad had successfully installed the original reactor, and was in pursuit of Stane. Her focus was jerked back to the man in front of her when he spoke.

"Alright, girlie, here's the deal. We don't know why you're important and frankly we don't give a fuck," Goon-1 smiled as his fellow goons laughed in agreement at his back, his gaze moving appreciatively over her form as he continued, "Now, we got orders not to kill you, but that don't mean we can't be friendly, right, sweetheart?"

Darcy's previous rage broke through whatever damn she was holding it behind, and she preened with satisfaction as her sudden and feral smile made each goon flinch back before they could check their reactions.

JARVIS, I'm going to need to put you on hold. I've got some business to take care of.

It was time to rescue herself.

The goons didn't stand a chance. Without moving from her seated position on the floor of the warehouse, Darcy quickly barricaded all the exits she could see with whatever scraps of metal and machinery that was littered about.

The sudden movement startled the goons into action, each one raising a gun up to their shoulder, keeping Darcy in their sights. Rolling her eyes as she stood, just slowly enough that no one would get trigger-happy, Darcy addressed her words at Goon-1.

"No, sweetheart, we're not gonna be friendly with each other if I can help it," she seethed at the man. Letting her rage fuel her mind, Darcy unleashed her powers.

Using both her technokinesis and telekinesis at once was beautiful and terrifying in its lethalness. When Goon-1 was suddenly yanked from the ground by a tangle of wires pulled from the ceiling, electrocuting him all the while, the other goons began struggling as an unseen force began tearing their guns from their grasp. One managed to get off a lucky shot that clipped Darcy in her hip before his second round was stopped by Darcy's mind.

Inhaling through clenching teeth, Darcy surrendered to completely her instincts, trusting her mind and powers to guide her to safety.

Goons were suddenly dodging and battling half-dead pieces of machinery that sparked furiously, groaning and setting chase with a cold vengeance. Exposed wires went after those who tried to run for the exits, pulling them tight to the walls and coursing electricity through their veins as they struggled for breath.

As this chaos devolved around her, Darcy fought hand-to-hand with a goon her powers seemed to have missed. Where the man had age, height, and experience that dwarfed hers, he stank with fear that distracted him as he watched his comrades fall to her powers all around them. He clearly thought this job was a milk-run, and Darcy's feral grin grew at his misfortune as she took him down with a final uppercut that sent him in the path of some zombified machinery.

Looking around at the mess she had made, Darcy felt exhaustion seep into her bones. She sank to her knees as the final groans of the defeated goons quieted. Her mind was sluggish, and she felt disoriented from all the adrenaline she had burned through.

JARVIS? Did I do okay? You figure out where I am, yet?

Yes, Darcy. You were so very brave. I was able to track the power surge you created and I have sent the location to Sir and the rest of the family. They will be there shortly.

'Kay...I'm gonna sleep now, freak out 'bout this later.

Very well, little sister. I will see you soon

Chapter 14

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

"I am Iron Man."

The words had barely left her father's mouth when Darcy reached for her phone with one hand and her morphine pump with the other. She frantically upped her dosage a couple times as she waited for her phone to connect her to Pepper. And if she used her abilities to make the phone ring a little more violently, well, that was nobody's business but hers.

Pepper was quick to answer, thankfully, "I am going to murder him, Darcy, I really am."

"Oh, fantastic. I thought it was just the good drugs but it turns out that my Dad is actually as crazy as we all suspected. What the hell, Pepper?!"

The older woman sighed. "I'll handle it. I have no idea how, but I'll handle it."

Darcy felt a sly grin creep on her face as she teased, "Because you're Pepper goddamn Potts?"

Pepper's reply was firm, if not a little terrifying in its tenacity.

"Because I am Pepper mother-fucking Potts, and I take shit from no man."

"I've told you recently that you terrify me, right? Yet I also want to be you when I grow up?"

Darcy felt warmed by Pepper's laugh, letting the morphine drag her back to sleep as the woman replied. "Yes, Darcy. Now get some sleep, I know you're bored, but a gunshot wound can't be walked off."

She was pretty sure she mumbled something to do with lies, but Darcy was too far down the rabbit hole to be certain.

"You're a jackass."

Tony sighed, looking up from his seat in the limo to Pepper across from him. She was beautiful when she was angry, but Tony valued his life and respected the woman too much to admit it. Mainly because he usually deserved whatever it was that put him in the path of her rage.

"Probably."

"I'm not even sure how to handle this. Do you realize how much more work you just gave me? Do I calm down SI or-"

Tony tried bribing as he heard the anger rise more and more in Pepper's voice, "I'll give you a raise! A big one!"

"-does HR even have an inkling of what to do in these type of situations? No! Do you know why, Tony?"

"...you're probably gonna let me know-"

"Because secret identities are supposed to be SECRET!"

The limo suffered an awkward silence for an immensely long five minutes, casually rolling down the California streets to head back to the mansion. Tony fiddled with his hands in his lap, waiting until he heard Pepper get her breathing back under her control before he began to speak.

Softly, as if not to unintentionally sound too defensive, Tony asked Pepper to look at him. When she reluctantly did, he continued.

"I'm sorry. I am. It was selfish of me to just throw that out in the open like that, especially when you worked so hard with that guy from SHIELD to keep it under wraps." He ran a hand over his face, taking a moment to gather his thoughts.

"I just couldn't bear the thought of more secrets, Pepper. That's how we got into this mess. Stane hiding things from me, suspicion growing in every dark corner, I can't run the risk of something like that beginning again."

Pepper's face softened at his sincere tone, but she wasn't convinced. "Tony, I understand where you're coming from. But, don't you think that the situations are a bit different? Stane was a psychopath who was desperate for money and an empire, and this is you being...a superhero." She pinched the bridge of her nose between her fingers, her other hand clenching into a fist on her knee.

Leaning forward to bridge the distance between the two, Tony placed his right hand over her fist, causing Pepper to drop her hand and look at him. Tony had to clear his throat when he noticed just howclose they were, but he pressed on regardless.

"I know that, Pepper, I do. But I need the world to see that I'm righting my wrongs here, that if they try to use me again, I'll bring down a level of hell on their heads that they have never seen." His voice turned icy and cold, eyes vacant as he stared into the middle distance.

He was startled out of his reverie when Pepper's other hand came to rest on his, sandwiching his bigger hand between her smaller two. He looked at them and how they contrasted: two smooth and pale, the other tanned and scarred, and perpetually having grease stuck in his nail beds.

The image did funny things to his heart that he didn't want to think about.

"Okay," Pepper sighed, "I forgive you for being a jackass."

He smirked.

"This time."

Rhodey was waiting for Tony in the mansion's living room, sharing a couple beers with Logan and watching a bored Darcy teach Fen how to play go fish.

"Do you have any two's?"

One low beep.

"Okay, Fen. I want to believe you, but we've had problems here before. Are you sure you don't have any two's?"

Two higher pitched beeps.

"Fine. I'll just keep getting my ass handed to me by my 'bot. Casual Thursday in the Stark household."

Rhodey smirked at his niece's disgruntled face, her hair a tangle of curls that flowed across her shoulders and down her chest, dark glasses perched at the end of her nose as she looked at Fen with suspicion. He watched as she seemed to let whatever it was go, rolling her eyes and drawing from the deck of cards on her lap.

It'd been about a month since his friend's superhero version of coming out of the closet, so Rhodey had taken to spending even more time in the mansion when he knew that Tony, Pepper, and Happy would be gone for long period of times for press conferences and meetings with different military groups.

He rolled his eyes, thankful that he wasn't part of that mess. Rhodey was also thankful for Logan who handed him another beer just as he finished his current one.

A couple days after the boss fight between Tony and Stane, as they all came from the hospital to bring Darcy home, the family had come back to the mansion to find a pissed Logan leaning against his motorcycle in the driveway.

"Ya gotta lot to explain, Stark."

There had been a lot of yelling, male posturing, nervous robots, and Darcy demanding some popcorn and morphine for her testosterone-fueled entertainment.

So, things going no differently than usual, Rhodey thought.

It had taken some time but Logan eventually had gotten the full story from Tony and Pepper about what went down with Stane, Rhodey repressing a smile when the mutant actually growled at the mention of Darcy's abduction. He quickly sobered when that lead them all to ask Darcy about what had happened in the warehouse. They'd all seen the damage, having retrieved Darcy themselves, but they wanted to her about it from her point of view.

His niece was brave, he'd give her that. Had he been in her position, Rhodey doesn't think that'd he make it out like she did. Then again, Darcy Stark was her own brand of special.

Darcy told her story calmly, filling in every possible detail and not hesitating to answer a question when one was prompted. She told them about contacting JARVIS, the goons, and the following blood bath.

"I'm not really sure how it happened," she admitted, "I've got more control and strength behind my powers now than ever before, but even prior to that night I had never been able to wield them like that." She paused, picking at a scab on her knuckles before continuing, looking everyone in the eye as she did so.

"It wasn't just the violence of it, though. Obviously I've never done anything remotely close to that before, just some harmless pranking that was safe. But...it was as if something just unlocked. I was so angry and then it was as if I was just a bystander as my powers took over. It was quicker than instinct. I fought the one guy while he was close, but it was if the warehouse had a mind of its own."

Rhodey knew that he wasn't the only one who was scared of the implication that Darcy's powers were uncontrollable, but he also knew what everyone else was thinking, too.

The damage done to those men and to the warehouse told a story of something far opposite of lacking control. Each man died with a precision that was eerie, and the warehouse was used as a weapon in the most efficient way possible.

They all stewed in silence for a few more moments before Tony spoke, "Do you guys think it's maybe the 'mega-mind' thing? Her brain is basically unparalleled everywhere else, maybe when it came to her self-protection instincts it just cranked itself up to overdrive."

Rhodey was glad for his genius friend because he wasn't sure he could deal with anymore unknown variables when it came to Lil Bot. The logic was sound, it seemed like a likely solution, and Rhodey was damn tired about worrying over the Starks.

One day, they'll have a movie night like normal families, he hopes.

Notes:

still many thanks for the love!

think i'm going to start on Thor in the next chapter. that bit of the story will probably last a bit longer since it's got more darcy-centric stuff, as well as more awesome characters.

I'll probably bring Iron Man 2 in there somewhere, but not too much since it goes on around the same time as Thor and i want to stay focused on darcy for this bit. She's finally out of the house and becoming more independent

Chapter 15

Notes:

you guys are the best, truly. i thank you from the bottom of my heart for all your kind words and likes and kudos.

back to our scheduled programming:

THOR! JANE! FLUFF! FRIENDSHIP! woo!

Chapter Text

Darcy sat next to Pepper at the bar, sipping wine as her Dad continued to fret and establish ridiculous security protocols with JARVIS. Rolling her eyes, she wordlessly topped off Pepper's glass as well as her own, smiling at the woman's wink she was thrown. Realizing that her Dad was going to continue freaking out for a bit longer, she retreated mentally so make sure she had packed everything she needed.

Darcy was going to New Mexico for an internship with Doctor Jane Foster, and would be gone for about six months. She didn't actually need and internship or the science credits it offered, but this was part of Darcy's 'playing at normal' plan. Over the past three years or so since her Dad had outed himself as Iron Man, Darcy had completed a Masters degree in business management, as well as two Doctorates, in mechanical engineering and computer programming, respectively. Was it entirely fair since she had mutant abilities that gave her a leg up in the field? Probably not, but while Darcy could make things workwith her powers, she liked learning the history of each subject and seeing how things came to be in each field of study.

So now at the ripe age of twenty-one, Darcy had approached Pepper with a plan. She grew up alarmingly sheltered, and wanted to be part of the 'real world' for a bit. She began by commuting to a nearby community college that was near the Malibu mansion to earn a degree in political science. After a year of slow (for her, at least) going, while also working on her doctorates after-hours, Darcy transferred her credits to Culver University and bought a small studio apartment that she shared with Fen at the edge of campus. She had timed the move perfectly with that of her family's move to New York City and her Dad's Stark Tower project launch. There was a lot of yelling and negotiating, but a compromise was met when Darcy promised she'd come home to New York every other weekend to visit.

Now as a 'senior' at Culver, Darcy was told she needed six science credits in order to graduate and that an internship was her best shot. Unfortunately, since there were not any poli-sci internships still open, that left one slot available with one Dr. Foster.

"How do you even skip taking science credits anyways, Bot?" her Dad was incredulous, as if Science! was the be-all end-all of academia.

"I'm doing the whole 'normal kid' thing, remember? You really think a poli-sci student is going to want to take an abundance of hard sciences? Besides, I was busy with my PhD's." Darcy threw back the last of her wine when she finished, and debated the merits of getting another glass.

On one hand, four glasses of wine while her Dad sipped on scotch always made for memorable debates in the Stark home. But on the other, they made for really interesting debates in the Stark home. Darcy still wasn't sure what happened to the sentient and evil blender that came from one night of drunken shenanigans, but JARVIS assured her that she really didn't want to know.

Pepper seemed to know what she was thinking and began looking at her own empty glass in contemplation. Shrugging, she topped her own glass off again before giving Darcy's the same treatment. The women began laughing when they saw her Dad's wary look between the two.

"Great. You guys are going to get all wine-sassy and gang up on me, then Bot is going to do her whole Bambi eyes bullshit and then I'm going to cave because I've gone soft-"

"Tony, all we're really hearing is that you've already lost and that you should just accept your defeat with whatever shred of dignity you still possess."

Darcy choked on her swallow of wine at Pepper's droll interjection, but was saved by the older woman's gentle pats between Darcy's shoulder blades.

Looking between the two women, Darcy's father's shoulders sagged in defeat.

"Fine, you beautifully manipulative women, fine," he rolled his eyes as they girls fist-bumped without looking at one another, "Don't get smug, it doesn't suit you. As a compromise I think I'll head back to the Malibu mansion while you're in 'The Land of Enchantment,' just for my own peace of mind that I'll be closer to you, just in case. Deal?"

Darcy pretended to think about it, but everyone knew that she couldn't fault her Dad for wanting to keep her safe. Nodding in agreement, she smiled.

"It's going to be six months in the desert with an astrophysicist, it'll be fun!"

It was not fun. Darcy had just walked from baggage claim in the lovely air conditioned airport to the scorching heat of the pick-up lot.

There was no fun to be had in a place that was this warm at nine in the goddamn morning.

Darcy yanked off her oversized sweater and matching beanie, hastily pulling her heavy locks off the back of her neck up into a huge messy bun. She was flushed and panting, much to the amusement of the twelve year old kid with his bags to the right of her. Ever the mature adult, she stuck her tongue out at him. He responded in kind, and all of a sudden the situation just spiraled out of control from there.

Dr. Jane Foster found her ten minutes later sitting on the curb, competing with a pre-teen in a 'ridiculous-face' competition, which she was totally winning, be-tee-dubs.

Darcy noticed the woman out of the corner of her eye and turned without putting her face back into a neutral position. Foster simply raised an eyebrow in question, then tilted her head in consideration.

"If you could cross your eyes more, I think whatever look you're going for will come together better."

Oh, Darcy liked Dr. Foster! Transforming her face from whatever nonsense she had it stuck as to a happy smile, Darcy jumped up and held out her hand for the good doctor to shake.

"Hi! I'm Darcy Lewis, your lovely new intern for the next half-year. I specialize in making excellent coffee, tinkering, and wrangling in the crazy."

Dr. Foster squinted her eyes a bit as she shook Darcy's hand, trying to get a read on her. "You tinker?"

"I tinker."

The smaller woman beamed up at Darcy, gripping and shaking her hand with more enthusiasm than before.

"Call me Jane."

Two months had passed since the start of Darcy's internship, and she fucking loved it.

Jane was a genius, but was like an adorably cranky toddler when she went too long without sleep or food. Having developed her scientist-wrangling skills at a young age, Darcy had an excellent system to make sure that the pint sized doctor was properly cared for.

Darcy would slowly start placing small cups of coffee further and further out of Jane's reach, like a trail, so that Jane would have to leave whatever station she was Science!-ing at and follow Darcy. At the end of the trail was usually a bottle of water and a well-balanced meal. Whenever she needed to get Jane to sleep or shower, Darcy would replace the coffee with pop-tart pieces and lead her to the proper room. Darcy wasn't entirely sure why, but Jane acted like a cat with cat-nip around the pastry so Darcy didn't question it two closely.

As time passed, Darcy and Jane grew away from the whole employer/assistant relationship and moved closer and closer to a true friendship. Darcy had made friends over the years, in college, at the animal shelter where she volunteered as a teenager, and even at various libraries and coffee shops she visited as a kid. None of them seemed as authentic as her friendship with Jane, though. When she thought about it, Darcy believed it was because Jane was a bit of a loner too, underestimated because of her genius and her 'crackpot' theories. The two of them just clicked, and piece by piece Darcy began to open up to the first person outside of her family.

When Jane noticed that Darcy's 'tinkering' on her machines was less fiddling and more 'here-let-me-completely-gut-and-fix-and-recalibrate-so-that-it-works-a-million-times-better-than-before,' Darcy sheepishly admitted that she was pretty good of an engineer and her Dad was a mechanic who taught her a thing or two.

Understatement.

Darcy tried to dial back how much she let Jane see of her, not for a lack of trust, but because she didn't want to scare off her new friend. So Darcy was pretty shocked when Jane came up to the roof after Darcy had her nightly phone call to her Dad with a bottle of tequila, four months into their time together.

Jane poured them each three shots as she sat down, swallowing hers down one after another, then gesturing for Darcy to do the same. Shrugging, Darcy did as she was told and then spread her hands, opening the floor to Jane.

"Okay, minion. You and I are going to get down and dirty with this heart to heart shit. You are no longer my intern, you are my friend, my best friend, and I want you to be able to tell me things," she raised her hand to cut off Darcy's stuttering protests, "I'm not saying you aren't telling me things, because you are. And I'm not demanding you to tell me everything. I know some secrets are good for you, but some aren't, and you don't have to tell me anything you don't want. But I want you to know that I care about you and trust you, and you can trust me too."

Darcy's mouth opened and closed a few times, completely overwhelmed by her friend's heartfelt words. She decided that she needed another moment or two, and took a couple swallows from the tequila bottle between her and Jane.

The tears in her eyes were from the burn of the alcohol, nothing else, obviously.

Finally gathering her strength, she beamed at Jane as she spoke, "You're my best friend too, boss-lady. I'm not sure I've actually had a real one of those. And you're right, I'm not telling you everything, but I dowant to. It's only fair since you've been pouring your heart out to me these past few months."

Jane smiled brilliantly at her, a little choked up as well. "I don't think I've had a real best friend either."

"Well, we can figure it out together."

That night the two of them stayed up late, leaving Science! be for the evening, and shared secrets like every girly rom-com demanded of them.

Darcy did keep a few things close to her chest though, like that her father was Tony Stark, she had a 'mega-mind,' and her siblings were AI's she could communicate with in her mind.

Jane did get to learn about Darcy's more obvious mutant powers, as well as a peek at just how smart Darcy truly was. There was a lot of high pitched squeals of glee when Darcy revealed that she also had a PhD or two under her belt, and drunken shouting to the stars that they were 'women of science destined to topple the old white man.'

Darcy had laughed so hard she had cried.

Darcy decided that she was going to stay at Jane's side forever when the woman was nonplussed by her mutant powers. While she found them fascinating, they were more of a footnote rather than the important bits.

"You're my best friend first, Darcy. Is it cool that you can do all sorts of awesome things with your brain?Yes. But you're Darcy first, mutant second, third, and fourth." Darcy had tears in her eyes at Jane's words, and shamelessly let them fall when she saw Jane was in the same state.

Desperate for some levity to break up the heavy mood, Darcy chuckled and spoke up.

"Thanks, but I think you and I both know your gear is one crossed wire from accidentally opening a black hole in the lab. I think I could use my powers to help us out a bit, boss-lady."

The hangover the next morning was brutal, but in the end, totally worth the closer friendship and loyalty between the two.

Strange things were coming, after all, and they'd need to rely on one another

Chapter 16

Notes:

here we go! just a heads up, i don't have much practice writing battle/fight scenes, so if it doesn't read too well, forgive me!

thanks again for all the love you guys keep sending my way :)

Chapter Text

Darcy watched with fond amusement as Jane and Erik bickered back and forth about some equation or another, arms covered in ink and half-crazed wildness in their eyes.

The older doctor had arrived a few nights ago, Jane having decided that her mentor would be a good set of fresh eyes on her work and he'd tell her straight if she was wrong. Darcy knew that Jane wasn't, but she didn't want to say something and have Jane start doubting herself in some twist of reverse psychology. It happened often enough with her friend. It was some strange cycle of triumphant confidence and spiraling self-doubt, so Darcy left her well enough alone unless she truly needed it.

Darcy startled as she felt a nudge to her foot from where she sat at her desk, music blaring in her ears as she was tinkering with a small circuitboard that Jane needed for one of her machines. Looking down, she smiled as she saw Fen waving at her from his place on the ground. Darcy had her Dad send Fen shortly after Jane and Darcy's night on the roof, much to both Fen and Jane's delight.

Darcy accepted the cup of coffee Fen gently handed her and watched as he slowly rolled his way to Jane and Erik. After what Darcy assumed must have been a very loud beep from the bot from the way the two flinched, she saw the two look down and break out in dopey grins at the bot, thanking him for their coffee.

She had no idea why, but Darcy could see just how crazy her friends were over Fen. They doted on him like a real puppy, cooing over him and petting him, but also used him to bounce Science! ideas off of. And Fen? Fen simply adored the scientists, trailing after them like a happy shadow, pleased as punch when Jane or Erik taught him something new or had him tote things around the lab for them. Like Darcy, Fen could tell that the two geniuses needed help with day to day things, and he was thrilled to take care of them.

Darcy took a long sip of the coffee, sighing in pleasure. Damn that's good. None of them were entirely sure how Fen made such perfect coffee, just that the kitchen was always a mess after. No one had it in their hearts to scold the little guy, afraid it'd break his little mechanical heart. Also, coffee.

After draining her mug of the liquid gold Darcy began straightening out her desk, tossing broken metal pieces to the proper bin on the other side of the lab, amusing Fen as she danced the pieces above his head before they landed. Reaching out with her mind, Darcy was satisfied to find that all the machines were in working order, and they were all ready to go. Jane was having them drive out into the desert tonight to hunt for more anomalies, they couldn't afford a malfunction. Not that malfunctions were something that occurred around Darcy, but she's been spending so much time 'acting normal' these past few years that the second and triple checking were becoming second nature to her.

Darcy pulled out her earbuds and called to her charges across the room.

"Okay, boss-lady! Pops! Grab Fen and whatever you need, I've got the tank that's masquerading as a van all gassed up and ready to go-"

"I still don't see why I must be called 'Pops,'" Erik grumbled.

"-so let's get ready for Science!"

Jane laughed at the disgruntled Erik and the now ecstatic Fen, who had started zipping around the lab making loud trilling noises as if this was the first time they had ever left the lab.

"Don't be grumpy, Erik. You know the minion can't function without giving everything a nickname."

Darcy winked at her friend, thankful for the solidarity. Looking to Erik, she shrugged.

"IF you can say with a straight face, that you don't feel any paternal instincts towards Jane, me, or evenFen, then I'll totally stop calling you Pops."

The man looked between her and Jane, finally settling his gaze on Fen who had paused in front of him, mechanical eyes doing his best Puss in Boots impression.

"Goddamnit."

Jane and Darcy broke out in laughter as Erik couldn't seem to resist giving Fen a couple pats at the bot's loving coos.

"It's okay, Pops. We love you too."

Darcy looked down at the man she just tazed. The man she just tazed that they hit with the van. Ah, shit.

"Fen, come back here!"

The bot had slowly started rolling toward the downed man, staying far enough away that his claw had to fully extend before he could poke the him. Fen looked at Darcy, then back to the man, before poking him a final time and quickly retreating to hide behind Erik's legs.

Jane seemed to gather her senses first, snapping into action.

"Oh, my god! Darcy you tazed him-"

"Can you blame me?"

"-shit and we hit him with the van-"

"We hit him? Uh, that was you, boss-lady."

"Erik! Darcy! Help me put him in the van!"

Erik and Darcy shared a look, simultaneously agreeing that fighting Jane on this would result in a catastrophe. Together they each grabbed an arm, and began to lift.

There was a lot of grunting, swearing, and a muffled thump that was definitely not the strange man's head hitting the side of the van. Nope, not at all. All the while, Fen kept curiously poking the man with a claw and making inquisitive beeping noises when they garnered no reaction. After several minutes and careful maneuvering, they finally got the massive man into the vehicle and were headed back into town.

Twenty minutes of silence passed, only interrupted by Jane's grumbling and furious scribbling over what little data the machines had managed to pick up.

Checking the rearview mirror to peek at the trio in the back, Darcy cracked up at what she saw.

Erik was crowded up against the side of the van between the unconscious man and an assload of machinery, Fen in his lap. What really had Darcy busting her gut was that Erik was having problems keeping the little bot under control. Erik kept trying to hold on to Fen's little arms which seemed determined to continue poking the unconscious man until he got a reaction. Erik himself was torn between amusement and exasperation, but kept a steady hand on Fen regardless.

"You okay back there, Pops?"

Erik just rolled his eyes, and told Darcy to shut up and keep driving.

After the night spent stargazing with Jane and teaching her of Yggdrasil Thor felt much more at peace with his mortal body. He was still lost, and he was still in pain that he could not wield Mjölnir, but he felt a small joy that he had helped Jane recover some of her stolen work.

Thor was helping Jane prepare breakfast when he heard the beeping he had come to associate with the small machine that ran free in the lab. It was a curious thing, made of metal but containing a consciousness. Still, he found the 'robot,' as he was told it was called, to be quite endearing.

Kneeling, he took the offered mug and bowed his head in thanks. Seemingly pleased, the small machine made a multitude of noises before quickly disappearing.

"Fen's a big fan of you, big guy."

From his knelt position on the floor, Thor looked up to see Darcy standing a few feet away holding a pile of dirty dishes.

"Fen?" he inquired. Such a strange name.

"His full name is FENRIR, it stands for 'Friendly & Extraordinarily Nettlesome Really Intelligent Robot.'"

She must have seen the look of recognition on his face as she was quick to remove any apprehension Thor may have had about the stigma of the creature's name.

"I was just a kid when I made him, and was actually reading up on Norse mythology for my schooling. I read about a 'dog' and decided I'd name Fen after him."

Thor was wary still, but trusted that Darcy would not bring a creature that could bring about Ragnarök like his brother's own Fenrir could.

As Darcy left him to go wash dishes, Thor thought of the strange mortal. Whatever faint traces of magic he still possessed seem to pick up something other from young Darcy. During short amount of time since he had found himself in the company of these Midgardians, Thor had kept an eye on Darcy. He did not think that she was a threat to him or to others, but he made sure that he did not dismiss her either.

Sif would have his head for thinking less of a maiden in that way.

Thor smiled sadly at the thought of one of his oldest friends, and wondered what she and the Warriors Three were doing now. Surely, some adventure or another, as was their way.

As if summoned by his thoughts, Thor turned to see his shield brothers pressed against the building's windows, smiling and banging upon the glass for his attention.

There was a rapid series of introductions between his oldest and newest friends, pinching Fandral in the side when his gaze was a touch too appreciative of Jane than Thor was comfortable with.

Then the Destroyer arrived.

I need new friends, Darcy thought, panting as she ran with an arm full of wriggling animals, Fen following her with his own set of furry creatures riding in his 'truck bed.' Finding a car full of people that hadn't left town yet, Darcy picked up her pace and started handing off kittens and puppies to people in the car, lifting up Fen so he could unload as well.

As the dust kicked up in her face from the car's squealing tires, Darcy took stock of her surroundings. Every civilian seemed to have made it out of the town, the streets empty for the first time since Darcy arrived. Gotta love what metal death-bots did for tourism.

The building next to her was suddenly lit up with fire, showering a screaming Darcy and Fen with bits of debris. Quickly getting her wits about herself, she unearthed herself and Fen with her powers, picking up her bot and running away from the scene. Fen wasn't too pleased, but Darcy needed him safe, not happy.

"Fen, I need you to listen to me, okay? You gotta get out of town, head for the desert and away from the buildings."

Darcy's heart broke at the pitiful crying noises he made, but she had to protect him and couldn't let her emotions rule her.

"Baby, you gotta do what I say, alright? You're too little and I can't let you get smashed out here. Mama's gotta help Jane, you want to keep Jane safe, right? Erik and Thor too?" Darcy was begging, hoping her little AI understood the severity of the situation.

Thankfully, Fen came around. Ducking down behind a building on the end of the block, Darcy brought her face close to Fen's.

"Okay, sweetheart, you gotta go now. Go as fast as you can and hide away from the buildings, okay? I gotta help keep everyone safe. I'll keep you linked in so you can see that I'm alright, but only if you stay where it's safe until I tell you that you can come back."

Fen stared in her eyes for a few more moments before giving a tiny nod, turning around, and zooming away. Darcy had to wipe her tears when she heard his little tiny cries as he drove, but felt better knowing he was out of harm's way.

Straightening her shoulders, Darcy ran back into the chaos.

Jane had been hiding behind an overturned car when she felt Darcy return to her side.

"You get Fen out of here?" Darcy nodded, and Jane let out the breath she didn't know she was holding. For such a tiny thing, Fen had such a big piece of her heart for some inexplicable reason.

"Jane, I've cut out what little surveillance equipment the town has, and SHIELD's, and I've rerouted most of the town's power."

Jane nodded along, before the implications of what Darcy was telling her sunk in. She made a grab for Darcy's arm as the younger girl began to creep out from their makeshift shelter.

"You are not going out there, Darcy! You'll get yourself killed!"

"Jane! I can help! Please, I can't sit here and let you or anyone else potentially get hurt without at leasttrying!"

Searching her young friend's face, Jane groaned when she realized that Darcy was right. Had Jane any ability that would help them out, Darcy wouldn't be able to stop her.

"Just please be as safe as you can, okay?" All she received was a quick hug from Darcy before Jane had to watch her friend jump into the fray.

From the corner of his eye, Thor saw Darcy run from behind some rubble over him and his fellow warriors, a grim determination on her face.

"Darcy! Go back and hide, I won't have you hurt!" He was about to drag the girl back into hiding himself when Darcy summoned the broken pieces of a metal sign into her hand, wielding them like battle batons.

"I'm going to need you shut up, Thor, because I can handle myself." With a twirl of her hands, Darcy readjusted her grip on her makeshift weapons and turned to the Asgardians. For once, they were speechless.

"Tell me," Darcy demanded, "Where does the destroyer get its power from? Electricity? Magic? A really hearty breakfast of Wheaties?"

Sif was the first one to break out of their combined stupor, "The Destroyer is powered by intricate spell-work from the most skilled of sorcerers in the realm."

Thor watched as Darcy's face fell in disappointment, before switching back to her previous determination. When she spoke again, she did so quietly and almost to herself.

"Right, well. That is unfortunate. But that ugly son of a bitch is made of metal, I can work with that. Okay, Darcy, let's go."

Looking to each Asgardian, Darcy raised an eyebrow as if to challenge, well?

Clapping a hand on Darcy's shoulder, Sif again was the first to react.

"Aye, Darcy, let's go."

Jane watched in horror with Erik as Darcy lead the aliens into battle with the Destroyer.

"She was hiding some things, wasn't she?" Erik mused, having seen her trick with the sign.

Letting out a small hysterical laugh, Jane nodded. "I've never actually seen the full extent of her abilities," before Erik could ask, Jane continued, "she's a mutant, abilities with technokinesis and telekinesis. She's also apparently had years of self-defense and some combat training with a fellow mutant. I believe in her."

"As do I."

Together they watched as the Asgardians flanked Darcy's sides, striding toward the Destroyer without a hint of fear. All at once, the warriors blitzed at the robot while Darcy distracted it with flying projectiles. Large pieces of concrete, parts of cars, anything and everything that had some weight behind it was suddenly flying at the Destroyer too fast for Jane's eyes to track. As each projectile hit its mark, Sif and the Warriors Three began brandishing their swords, Thor behind them all the while and attempting to reason with his brother through the machine.

Jane had a moment of hope as she saw the damage being done to the Destroyer, her friends laying into the machine with a deadly elegance that reminded Jane of ballet dancers. Her hope was abruptly extinguished, though, when she saw the goliath's hand deflect one of Darcy's projectiles, sending it directly back at her friend.

"NO!" Jane didn't realize that she had cleared out from her hiding spot until she felt the sting of gravel and glass on her knees and palms as she reached Darcy's side. Her friend was half-covered by what appeared to be a chunk of wall, plaster and brick still held together in a jagged chunk.

"Darcy! DarcyDarcyDarcy," She heard herself screaming her friend's name as if she was underwater, the shock of the day making her surroundings sound muffled and warped. With a surge of adrenaline Jane was able to shove the piece of wall off of Darcy, hands flitting over her friend's torso as she searched for injuries.

"Ah, fuck. Kitty's going to make me work on situational awareness again."

Jane sobbed with relief at her friend's rough voice, bending over the girl and bringing her to her own chest, dismissing the battle around them.

"Don't you dare scare me like that again, Darcy! I thought you died!"

"I'm sorry Janie, I'm so sorry. I'm okay, I was able to deflect most of the force when it hit, I've just got some bumps and bruises, I promise."

Pulling back enough to see Darcy's face, Jane broke out in sobs again when she saw tears in her friend's eyes as well.

"Come, on, we gotta hide. You're done playing real life Mortal Kombat." Before Jane could so much as help Darcy sit up, loud shouting caused her to turn and peer over her shoulder.

She turned just in time to see Thor get back-handed by the Destroyer, soaring through the air and landing with a sickening thunk a mere yard in front of her and Darcy. She was frozen until Darcy's voice and shoving hands broke through the fog.

"Go, Janie, go. I'm okay, help Thor!"

Scrabbling on her hands and knees to the fallen man, Jane's tears grew in strength as she saw the bloody scratches and bruises that were marring Thor's handsome face.

It was his final whispers of 'it's over' and his sad smile that broke Jane's heart. She gave her heaving sobs free reign, the fear for her best friend and the loss of the great man in front of her too much to bear.

Jane didn't even realize that Erik had pulled her back to Darcy until she heard the high pitched whistle through the air, looking up to see Mjölnir arc toward it's master.

She closed her eyes against the bright light as the hammer landed, and tucked her head against Erik's shoulder, hoping that they'd live long enough that she could say goodbye

Chapter 17

Notes:

fun fluffy chapter for post-thor! water balloons as per request by Liebekatze!

probably will be diving back into plot again soon, but i figured we needed a wind down for a moment.

Chapter Text

The taste of the cheap tequila was normally enough to have Jane grimacing and coughing, but she was just too damn tired. There was a wormhole, aliens, a battle, and Thor was gone. She needed the booze and her friends.

Jane was sitting with Darcy and Erik back in the lab, slouched on the floor and passing the bottle while they watched SHIELD's jack-booted thugs replace all of her equipment.

Taking another swig, Jane rolled her eyes as Agent Sitwell continued to 'debrief' them, lecturing them about how important it was to keep this classified, national security blah blah blah. She still let out a little giggle whenever Darcy did, still remembering Darcy's many quips about certain jack-booted thugsshe wouldn't mind to debrief with.

They were drunk, sue them.

Even Erik was letting out a chuckle or two, but Jane thought he was mostly laughing at her and Darcy. They were snuggled up on either side of him, letting him hold his girls close for the time being. They had a hell of a day, they won't begrudge Pop's needing to dust off his paternal instincts.

Agent Coulson walked over to them after Sitwell had asked them to pay attention for the fifth time in a row.

"What's crackin', Son of Coul?" Darcy slurred and hiccuped a giggle, setting the tequila bottle down and making grabby hands at the water bottle Coulson was handing to her. After giving both Erik and Jane a bottle as well, Coulson looked to Sitwell and dismissed him.

Turning back to look down at the trio, Jane had to guess they looked like a damn mess going by the unimpressed look on Son of Coul's face. They were all dirty, covered in scrapes and bandages, and drunk as skunks. Jane let out another giggle as she leaned over Darcy for the tequila. Based on the look on Coulson's face, she was going to need some liquid courage.

"Dr. Foster, Dr. Selvig, Miss Lewis. SHIELD would like to thank you for your cooperation and your aid to Puente Antiguo."

Darcy cackled, bending in half and clapping her hands like a deranged seal. While Jane didn't have the energy to keep up, she certainly felt the same.

"'Cooperation?!' Shit! I would hate to see what outright refusal looks like to you sorry sons of bitches!" Darcy was outright howling with laughter now, and Jane handed the bottle to her without prompting. With a sigh Erik took a final swig after Darcy, then handed the bottle to Coulson, much to the girls' loud disapproval.

Coulson's stoic Agent face was still in place, but he nodded a thanks to Erik for liberating the booze. The agent began to open his mouth, undoubtedly to start another lecture, when he was interrupted by a deep, but tentative male voice.

"Uh, Sir?"

Sighing, Coulson turned to the other agent. "What, Barton?"

Huffing a laugh, Barton adjusted his quiver and bow over his shoulder before he responded. "Well there's a tiny robot that's outside the building giving me and the rest of the agents hell. He doesn't seem dangerous, but I didn't know if you wanted us to do something about it."

Coulson's reply was cut off by an abruptly standing and shouting Darcy, swaying dangerously as she pushed her way past the men to the doors.

"FEN! Baby, I didn't tell you to come back yet! Hey! Let him go!" There was a lot of shouting and scuffling, but Darcy quickly returned victorious, holding Fen above her head, Lion King style.

"Janie! Erik! Fen's back!"

Too drunk to take notice of all the agents now watching the reunion, Jane and Erik started cooing at the little scared bot when Darcy came back to her spot at their side, plopping Fen in Erik's lap so he could be reached easily by everyone.

After the few minutes it took to get Fen to stop crying, and oh my god never let me hear that again, Jane looked up to meet Coulson's face, seeing an amused Barton over his shoulder.

"What?"

Shaking his head as if to clear his mind, Coulson turned to Darcy, "Miss Lewis, may I ask what that is?"

Without even looking up at the agent, Darcy rolled her eyes and continued to pet her baby. "HE is Fen, my bot. AND YOUR DIRTY SHADY GOVERNMENT HANDS ARE NEVER GONNA TOUCH HIM!"

And with that, Darcy scooped up Fen and ran into her room at the back of her lab, slamming and locking the door.

Looking back to Jane and Erik for answers, Barton and Coulson both raised their eyebrows in unison in question.

"That's about all you're going to get out of us about Fen, Agents. She tazed the god of thunder for scaring her, imagine what she'd do to you for hurting her baby." Erik managed to deliver the cold threat with only the smallest amount of slurs, making Jane proud.

Sensing that he had lost the battle before he had begun, Coulson retreated, saying that he was going to be back in the morning to go over their new security detail.

The following morning found Team Science! sitting at the lone table in the lab that wasn't covered in tech, staring blankly at the formica top with brutal hangovers.

It's quiet, I don't have to move, I can handle this.

Darcy's pep-talk was quickly halted by the thunking booted footsteps of Agent Barton marching into the lab, followed by a more sedate and quiet Agent Coulson.

Shit-eating grin on his face, Barton boomed, "MORNIN' GUYS? HOW YA FEELIN'?"

Without looking up from that one weird stain on the table, Darcy pulled her taser from the waistband of her pajama shorts and placed it on the table before she spoke softly, so as to not hurt her friends' heads.

"Barton. Robin Hood. Jack booted thug. I would think very carefully about the next thing that comes out of your mouth, especially at which decibel you wish to broadcast it."

Slowly moving her eyes to the men in black, Darcy was pleased to see Barton's wide-eyed look of shock before he hid it behind his stoic agent face.

He opened his stupid mouth as if to start bickering, which Darcy had zero tolerance for at the momentthank you very much, when Son of Coul seemed to take mercy on the hungover group and spoke over his agent.

"That's enough, Agent Barton. You two will have time enough to develop a better working relationship while you're here for their security detail."

This seemed like news to Barton, who spluttered foolishly until he was able to compose himself with a quiet Yes, sir.

Darcy let everyone's words wash over her as they discussed the finder details of their new jack-booted-thug-approved security, different protocols and other security concerns. Knowing she could just hack SHIELD later and grab the deets when she wasn't as hungover as Charlie Sheen after a bender. Instead, Darcy started plotting her revenge on Barton.

"Darcy, I don't think that this is a good idea," Jane knew it was the 20th time she'd said as much to her friend, but Darcy just wasn't seeing sense!

After everyone had gotten their hangovers under control, Darcy made a very determined trip to the grocery, only to come back with a whole mess of two-by-four's, power tools, and water balloons. Jane and Erik had wisely decided to let her be once they heard manic laughter over the sound of a drill coming from the shed behind the lab.

Darcy and Jane were now hiding behind said shed, filling hundreds of balloons up with water and loading them into the trebuchet Darcy had made.

"Janie Janie Janie. It'll be fine. They can't touch us! They need your brain for to get the rainbow bridge back, they're keeping Erik around for his help, and I'm still here because I refuse to let them disappear me! So think of this as belated revenge on SHIELD for stealing your research."

Jane knew, she knew, that this was a bad idea, but the bright shine of mischief in Darcy's eyes was too much of a siren song for Jane to resist.

"Okay," she laughed, "let's ruin some people's days!"

Giggling like mad, the two friends made the various calculations needed to make sure they hit all their targets. Darcy used her abilities to find where all the SHIELD agents were on nearby roofs as they monitored the lab.

Once everything was in place, the girls shimmied up on the side of the shed, hidden by an odd angle of wood that gave them the perfect cover. The lead that would let the girls set the balloons flying was long enough to be pulled from the position, creating the perfect nest. Grabbing a pair of binoculars, Darcy put their first target in her sights, and counted down.

"First target, ready? PULL!" With a heavy tug, Jane let the trebuchet rip, watching as twenty brightly colored water balloons arc through the air before she grabbed her own binoculars to watch them land.

With a very satisfying splat! each balloon met their mark, soaking the three agents two buildings over. The rest of the afternoon Jane and Darcy continued to launch their own brand of revenge on unsuspecting SHIELD agents, who seemed furious that their perches kept being found. After some time though, Darcy and Jane simply focused their efforts on whatever perch Agent Barton chose, payback for his obnoxious behavior that morning

Hours later Jane was navigating her way through the kitchen, trying to decide what to make for her dinner-duty night. Darcy sat on the counter next to her transcribing Jane's notes into something that was legible for research use. Both girls jumped as the lab's doors slammed open with an echoing bang, thunderous steps following shortly after.

Darcy just raised an incredulous eyebrow at the noise, then returned to her notes. Deciding to follow her friend's lead, Jane shrugged and went back to boiling some water for Mac n Cheese. Gotta love being on a budget, she sighed.

An irate Agent Sitwell barged into the kitchen, shadowed by a soaking wet, but highly amused, Agent Barton. The latter was grinning like a loon at the girls, tossing them a wink when Sitwell began to yell.

"I demand that you tell me how you were able to not only locate, but repeatedly attack some of the world's greatest trained agent's with nothing more than a trebuchet."

Jane heard Darcy muffle a giggle behind her hand as Sitwell continued to berate them and huff in his righteous fury. Deciding she had heard enough, Darcy raised a cool gaze to meet Sitwell's furious one. Not wanting to miss the show, she took a step back next to Barton who was watching the exchange with rapt attention.

"Well, done," he murmured, "that was seriously kick ass."

Snorting, Jane replied, "It was all Darcy, I just pulled the trigger."

Shrugging at Jane, Barton returned to the verbal sparring in front of them.

"Okay, Mr. MIB, a couple things. One, this town is tiny and that was before we tuned this town into a war zone, so there's only so many rooftops your world's greatest agent's can hide out on. And two, if you're pissed that your thugs got taken out by my Wal-Mart masterpiece, then I really think you should be yelling at them, not the duo who managed to dupe you so thoroughly."

Smug, Darcy gave Sitwell a wink before retuning to her notes, idly scratching out a line before rewriting it. Jane felt Barton's shoulders shake with silent laughter next to her, and couldn't help letting a breathless chuckle out as well.

"Okay, Sitwell, let's leave the ladies be, hmm?" Grabbing the older man by the shoulders, Barton began directing him out of the lab, sending a jaunty wave to the girls as he escorted a furious Sitwell away.

There was only a few minutes of peace before that too was interrupted by Erik, holding a phone in his outstretched hand, a tinny voice yelling from the speaker.

"Darcy, your father is on the phone? I found it under a desk and you had 30 missed calls from him, as well as some texts. Also a handful of missed calls from someone nammed, um, Kitty?"

Jane watched with curiosity as Darcy's face paled and the girl stumbled off the counter, running to Erik and snatching the phone.

"Shit I am in so much trouble." Taking a deep breath, Darcy brought the phone to her ear with a wince

Chapter 18

Chapter Text

"Darcy Marie Stark. What the ever-loving fuck have you gotten yourself into now?"

Tony's hands shook with anger and fear, wanting to shake his daughter so she saw sense but also wanting to clutch her close and never ever let her out of his sight again.

Before Darcy could say anything, Tony stormed right on, "I had to find out that shit was hitting the fan from Fen, Darcy, FEN! The little guy was so scared and contacted JARVIS, sending us the video feed from you! What was that thing? You almost got yourself killed!" His voice broke then, unable to continue yelling when that thought sobered him up.

He knew earlier, of course, as he and Pepper watched the feed of what was going down in New Mexico, hands held tightly together and fighting their tears, he knew that he almost lost her. But it was as if talking to her now, after all the adrenaline had faded his head was finally clear enough to let the thought sink in.

He almost lost Darcy.

His baby girl, the bright sun in what was his otherwise shade-filled life, he almost lost her today.

Choking back a sob when he heard Darcy crying across the line, he made a decision.

"I'm coming out there, Bot. I'm bringing Pepper and we're going to bring you home."

"Daddy, no, SHIELD is still here, they'll get even more suspicious!"

Tony froze at the thought of Darcy out in the middle of bum-fuck nowhere with SHIELD's grubby paws all over her, poking and prodding her like a science experiment.

"What the hell do you mean, 'more?'"

In his mind's eye, he could see Darcy fiddling with the hem of her sweater, a habit she formed when she was young when she was nervous.

"They, um, they maybe think I'm keeping secrets from them because I can always dodge their security tails they sic on me?"

Tony dropped his head to the countertop with a bang. Apparently he put enough force behind it that Darcy heard because he could hear her sharp intake of breath at the sound.

"Bot, you're gonna break your old man's arc reactor." Tony closed his eyes, heart breaking at the sound of Darcy crying.

"I was so scared, Dad. I've never seen anything like it before, it was terrifying."

"That's why I'm gonna come out and see you, okay Darcy? I'll deal with SHIELD, tell them I hacked them again, but I'm coming to you."

"Mom, too?"

"Yeah, Bot," a watery laugh escaped him at her timid question, but he was so damn happy. His baby girl was okay, he and Pepper were together, and they were a family.

"Mom's gonna come on out too."

Darcy slowly walked back into the kitchen where Jane and Erik were eating dinner, and she smiled when they saved her a plate and had it sitting between them. She was thrilled that her Dad was coming out, and Pepper (and she was just downright giddy that she heard her Dad call her 'mom,' there's a story there, she can feel it), but she didn't know if she had any more emotional strength to drop another truth bomb on her friends.

Just in case she found the courage tonight, she shorted out all of SHIELD's bugs with a thought. It was hilarious to watch them get so angry at how often they had to replace them, but she had to be careful that none of their suspicions traced back to her.

"Hey, minion, you okay?" Jane was searching her face, even after some cold water and a towel it must have been obvious to her friend that Darcy had been crying.

"Yeah, I just hadn't called my dad in a while and he was worried."

"You didn't tell him anything, did you? SHIELD will rain down here like fire and brimstone."

Darcy rolled her eyes and tapped her temple, signaling to Jane that SHIELD was taken care of.

"I didn't tell him everything, but he knows enough that shit got weird and the place is crawling with feds, so I let him draw his own conclusions." Darcy hated lying to Jane, but she felt less guilty knowing that she was going to tell her the truth soon, anyways.

"I'm glad you were able to contact your family, Darcy." Erik's smile melted her heart, so Darcy leaned to her side to wrap an arm around him.

"Yeah, Pops. Me, too."

The older man ruffled her hair affectionately and cleared his throat.

"So I have an announcement, girls." Erik was nervous, wiping his hands on his pants repeatedly and swinging his gaze between the two of them. "SHIELD wants me to work for them for a special project. I can't tell you about it, but it promises to be fascinating and it potentially could change the world."

Darcy, not liking the sound of that simply had to ask, "Change for the better? Or worse? I feel like they're leaving you a little open-ended there, Pops." Jane nodded in agreement to her left.

"I know, Darcy. But I rather work on it than some young thing wanting nothing more than recognition rather than an actual respect for the science."

They were all quiet for a moment until Jane asked when he was leaving.

"Tomorrow evening, Agent Barton is being assigned to the project as well for security, so I shall be in good hands."

The rest of the night was filled with semi-awkward conversation, everyone wanting to stay together but not having the guts to admit how much it scared each of them to be separated. The next day, Darcy and Jane helped Erik pack up his belongings and notes while the man himself spent the day trying to explain to a distraught Fen that he was leaving to work, but Erik did still love him. It was both endearing and heartbreaking, but neither Jane nor Darcy said anything about how teary-eyed they all got over it.

When it was finally time for Erik to leave they all exchanged sniffling hugs and goodbyes, promising to stay in touch however they could. Darcy made a note to try to slip inside SHIELD and see where he was going, but was interrupted by Barton as he poked his head in the lab.

"Hey, Doc, wheels up in ten." The agent looked around and the little group, and with a fuck it under his breath, quickly strode over to them and wrapped them all up in his arms.

Startled, the trio stood still for a beat before shrugging and returning Barton's hug.

"You guys just looked so damn sad, I couldn't stand it!" Barton patted Erik on the back as he turned to face Darcy and Jane.

"Promise to look out for this guy as best as I can, girls."

Relieved, Darcy wrapped her arms around Barton again in another hug. Yeah, the guy was a natural shit-stirrer, but he was awesome.

"Good, because I'll totally know and then you have to answer to us." Darcy's saccharine smile was a sharp contrast to her icy tone, one that Barton seemed to know to respect.

"I know you will, Darce. Hey, remind me to introduce you to my partner sometime, Nat would love you."

Agent Coulson chose that moment to interrupt with one of his familiar exasperated sighs that Darcy knew were special to Team Science!

"Barton, if you do not want me to have nightmares then I beg you to stop that train of thought right now."

Barton just chuckled, "No promises, sir. I think it'd be worth it."

"That's what worries me, Barton."

Jane and Darcy had been alone (well as alone as one can be with SHIELD over their shoulder) for three days before Darcy finally cracked.

"Janie?" She had never heard her friend so timid before, but gave Darcy all of her attention, knowing she needed it to have courage so say what she needed.

"Remember when I said I wanted to tell you everything? Well, there's a couple things I want to tell you."

"Finally," Jane sighed, barking out a laugh at Darcy's shocked expression, "You've been fidgeting like crazy ever sense Erik left, so I figured you had something on your mind."

Darcy almost looked relieved that Jane was paying such close attention, which made Jane wonder exactly what type of friends the girl actually had in the past.

"Okay, so, I told you my Dad is a mechanic, right?" At Jane's nod, she continued, "So...that's not exactlywrong, it's just not quite the whole picture either."

"Darcy. Spit it out."

"MyDadisTonyStarkandhe'scomingtovisittomorrow."

Jane blinked at her friend, not really having an answer to that. About thirty seconds passed before Jane had the ability to form words.

"I just want to make sure that what I thought I heard in all that garbled mess was actually what I heard, so I'm going to need you to repeat that, slowly."

Darcy took a deep breath and shut her eyes, almost as if she was scared at what she was about to say.

"My Dad is Tony Stark. Iron Man. My last name is Stark. And Dad's gonna be here tomorrow morning."

Jane fell back into her chair, completely at a loss for words. Tony Stark was her best friend's dad. What the hell.

"Please don't be mad, boss-lady! I wanted to tell you I really did but we've always kept it a secret because Dad's made enemies with a bunch of shady people especially now as Iron Man so we wanted to keep me safe but he freaked out when Fen called him and told him about Thor and everything going on over here and there was a fucking robot of death running around the city so I couldn't call and he was so mad and no he's worried about SHIELD grabbing me as a science experiment so he wants to come and-"

Sensing Darcy's impending panic attack, Jane launched herself at her friend and wrapped her in the tightest hug her tiny arms could manage. Almost immediately, Darcy sagged in relief and began taking deep breaths to calm down.

"Minion, I'm not mad! I promise you I am not mad at all. You just shocked me, is all. That was more surprising than you having kick-ass powers, honestly."

Darcy sniffled wetly from where her head was tucked against Jane's shoulder, "Really?"

"Of course, Darcy. I always knew you were special. But this is like your powers, okay? You're Darcy first, and everything else comes after. Mutant abilities or superhero dads."

Jane's smile mirrored the one she felt against her shoulder, and she relaxed knowing that she had successfully calmed Darcy down.

"Anything else before your old man gets here?"

"Well, Pepper Potts has helped raise me since I was three and I think her and Dad are a thing now because he called her my mom and my Dad created a fully functional AI before I was born named JARVIS and he's my big brother."

Jane just froze.

"Dad also made three other lower-level AI's that I also consider my siblings, and my technokinesis let's me communicate with all of them and Fen telepathically."

Jane didn't even think, she just grabbed the tequila from the cabinet, took Darcy's hand, and led them both up to the roof

Chapter 19

Notes:

you guys give me so much love, thank you!

Chapter Text

Jane was too hungover for this shit. That was kind of disappointing, really, because any other day she'd be ecstatic to meet Tony Stark and Pepper Potts. The man was a mechanical genius, and the woman was a goddess and inspiration to women everywhere.

Today, though? She's not having it.

She's slouched on the couch with Darcy, resting her head on the younger girl's while Darcy rests her head on Jane's shoulder. Empty coffee cups dangle from their hands and an empty plate that once held a mountain of toast rests where their knees meet. There was a lot of groaning, and maybe even a few tears, to get them this far.

Pepper is sitting in a chair across from them, sipping tea and looking way too put together in a pair of skinny jeans, converse, and a shirt that clearly belongs to Tony. The man in question is busy pacing the lab, alternating between pawing through her research and lecturing Darcy and Jane about their reckless behavior. Pepper at least looks as annoyed as they are at Tony, so that's good, Jane thinks.

The only one who's thrilled at Tony right now? Fen. The little guy is busy rolling after Tony, beeping and whirring as if he was trying to tell the engineer what all he's been up to in New Mexico. But now when Jane thinks about what she learned about Darcy's powers, maybe Fen is a little more alive than she thought, and he is actually trying to talk to Tony.

"Dad," Darcy croaked, "this hangover is punishment enough, please stop making so much noise."

Scoffing, Tony just continued rambling to himself as he quickly scanned pages of equations in Jane's notebook.

"Darcy, you didn't even tell me you were okay, you have to see why I'm upset, right?"

There was a loud slam of a slam of a ceramic mug on a coffee table, making everybody in the room flinch, including Fen. As one, the room turns to the source of the noise, which is a wrathful looking Pepper.

"That, is fucking rich, Tony Stark."

Jane isn't sure what's happening, but her head hurts and she kind of wants to disappear into the couch cushions so she doesn't have to see that look on Pepper's face anymore.

"Pep, I don't know if now is the time-"

"TONY! You cannot be serious! What about all that crap you spew about secrets? Hmm?!"

Darcy's rough voice interjected then, sensing WWIII on the horizon.

"Er, Mom?" And Jane just had to smile at that, apparently Darcy's been wanting to call Pepper that foryears, "What are you talking about?" Darcy looked between her parents, waiting for an answer.

Pepper seemed to realize that Tony wasn't going to have the guts to admit it, so she whirled her gaze over to Darcy, voice sharp.

"Darcy. I love you, but you were very reckless. I understand why, so I am not mad. I was just scared. However, there are some people," a very pointed look at Tony, "that like to be big fat hypocrites when it comes to telling people who love them that they're in danger. Apparently, he doesn't think that he should extend the same courtesy to us that he wants you to extend."

"Dad," Jane shivered at the ice in Darcy's voice, and very much feeling like she was intruding on something terribly private. She was still too hungover to move, so she continued to listen, "What. did. you. do?!"

Tony looked everywhere but at the women in the room, and Pepper growled at the man and responded for him.

"Darcy, your father was dying and didn't tell anyone a damn thing until it was almost too late."

Jane sighed as she looked into the empty and stained mug in her hand. There's about to be a lot more yelling and tears. Where's the coffee?

Phil Coulson didn't get to where he was in SHIELD by being unobservant. For instance, that Junior Agent he just passed? He just gave agent Sitwell the soy latte rather than the non-fat latte. Sitwell is allergic to soy. Nothing deadly, but enough to have the senior agent require a bathroom more than he would like today, so Coulson doesn't feel guilt in letting it happen. Sitwell was a little rusty, these days.

So Coulson could see what other's couldn't. He also let others only see what he wanted them to see. He didn't get the nick name Ice Man for nothing, and he's proud of it. It took him years to get the level of expert control over his micro-expressions that he has. Sometimes he lets people see a little bit more than the expect. It might make him a little bit of a sadist for wanting to watch the baby agents squirm, but they've got to get thick skin somehow.

He was reviewing the case files that were overflowing with the data Dr. Foster had gathered from Thor's landing, as well as minor readings off of Mjölnir. The only thing he didn't have enough of was data or eyewitness accounts of what actually happened during the battle with the Destroyer. Everyone had saidthe same things, but no one was speaking of what they saw. That had alarm bells going off in his head.

Now, a lesser agent would just leave it at that, not noticing the distinction. A slightly better agent may make the case that all but a handful of individuals were long gone from the town by the time of the fight, and they should be thankful that there weren't any casualties for such a damaging event. This still wasn't good enough for Coulson.

A good agent would tell Coulson that the lesser agent and the better agent's argument's both had merits, but also point out that the town's security cameras were down so that would explain why all three avenues of investigation turned up blank.

But you see, Coulson was the best agent. And he still had questions.

The first three arguments are valid. Trauma, lack of witnesses, and lack of public footage definitely are logical conclusions. But why were all the SHIELD bugs taken out? They were all battery-operated and linked to a closed network that was secured by the organization. How did they all simultaneously lose power? Also, why was only the town without power, rather than the entire grid (small as it was) it was connected to? And why did the power come back, with no complications, as soon as Thor left? The hammer did give off energy, yes, but not enough to take out a town when it was lying dormant until the end of the fight.

So Coulson had questions. But he also had leads to follow.

The handful of civilians (a term he is using loosely, here) that remained in town were Dr. Foster's team, the alien known as Thor, and the four warriors that seemed to be acquainted with him.

Coulson needed to narrow it down some more.

The four alien warriors were not observed long before the fight began, but from what he could see, Coulson knew they weren't what he was looking for. They were armed with medieval weaponry and armor, nothing noteworthy except for the seemingly wrong time period appropriateness. But then again, Barton used a bow and arrow. Regardless, the four were not there long enough to have accessed the town's power supply, take down each SHIELD bug, and return the power back by the time the battle was done. So Coulson could cross them off his list.

There was Thor. The man (alien) was familiar with Mjölnir, yet not deemed a threat since he could not wield the hammer until he had actually died. Coulson was still processing this. While Thor was in town longer than his comrades, Coulson could tell that the man was not the type to be proficient with technology, despite coming from an advanced alien race. From the way he carried himself, Thor was first and foremost a soldier, and a man second. Smash-and-grab is what Barton liked to call it. So Thor was of his list as well.

Next was Dr. Erik Selvig, mentor and father-figure to Dr. Jane Foster. The man had the technical know-how, and had access to technology that could potentially be used to his advantage against SHIELD. However, the man had a healthy fear and respect for the organization, and was often seen trying to talk Jane and Darcy away from confrontation with Coulson and his agents. SHIELD had been watching Selvig for some time, and was aware of all his contacts that had knowledge of SHIELD. The good doctor was too frightened by the shadow organization and was more concerned for Jane and Darcy's safety to try to confront SHIELD or any of its agents. Selvig was removed from Coulson's suspicions as well.

One would think that the obvious budding affection between Dr. Jane Foster and Thor would give her motivation to sabotage SHIELD, especially after they had appropriated her research and gear. This is where the better agent would have gotten stuck and Coulson would pick up the slack. Foster, while angry at SHIELD, did not have her technology on hand to tamper with the spy organization's bugs, much less redirect the town's power for a small amount of time. Though the woman is handy with machinery, the elegance required of a machine capable to pull off the feat would be incongruous with the style of machinery she preferred. Dr. Foster also would not dare to create any interference from any technology when such an unprecedented phenomenon was occurring. No, Dr. Foster was not who he was after. She respected the science too much.

At last, Coulson came to Darcy Marie Lewis. Twenty-one, Culver poli-sci senior, needed six credits in order to graduate. This is why Coulson is the best at what he does. So far, every single one of his agents has dismissed the young woman. Why? She is ditzy, loud, unprofessional, and is studying in a field that isn't even in the same spectrum than that of her internship. Coulson looks closer.

Why would a poli-sci student take on six months in the desert to study astronomical phenomena that they didn't understand? How did a seemingly normal girl seem to fix, and improve machinery for things they supposedly didn't understand? "Her father was a mechanic," yes, and Coulson is a drag queen every Tuesday night at the local Chili's.

The final nail in the coffin for Coulson was Fen. Where does a soft sciences undergrad gain the technical know-how to build a robot, with some form of intelligence, and no one notice? Even if she had kept the ability from her schooling, that wouldn't keep it out of the community she lived in. Friends, family, teachers, they all would have gossiped about a genius child with a pet robot, and SHIELD would have heard. So the fact that Miss Lewis had supposedly slipped through their fingers? Coulson didn't find it likely. Not to mention, while Dr. Foster lived in the trailer next to the lab, Miss Lewis stayed in the back room of the building. The same building where all their bugs kept shorting out.

He was pulled from his deduction when Agent Sitwell knocked and opened his office door.

"Sir, Tony Stark has arrived. He's in Foster's lab."

Yes, Coulson had a lot to think about when it came to Miss Lewis

Chapter 20

Notes:

lots of feels, guys, so many

Chapter Text

When asked, Coulson would tell you that wearing a suit everyday does not get boring, nor does it get uncomfortable. What many people don't realize is that Coulson is a a dirty liar.

Most of the time, he understands the need for the suit, it is professional as well as useful from a tactical standpoint. Men in suits are accepted everywhere and are immediately written off. Put a normal-looking man like Coulson in the suit? He's invisible.

But the heat? Coulson could live without the heat. When he gets hot and tired, he starts seeing thought and speech patterns as well as little idiosyncrasies that tell him he has spent too much time with Barton at his side.

When the AC in the SHIELD SUV fails as he drives to Foster's lab, his own Barton-voice makes itself known.

Awwww, AC, no.

Coulson hates that voice. Because he is a professional, goddamnit, and not the man-child that is somehow his best agent.

Thankfully, he arrives at Foster's lab quickly, only a light sweat breaking on his brow that will evaporate quickly before anyone can take notice. Coulson is also grateful that he chose to come alone to speak to Stark. Sitwell could barely handle Dr. Foster and her team, and despite whatever hilarity would ensue, Coulson didn't think it would be wise to put Sitwell and Stark together in a small place.

Coulson pushed open the front of the lab, immediately barraged by a multitude of yelling voices. Taking the opportunity for what it is, Coulson lightens his footsteps and doesn't make his presence known, slowly making his way to the source of the noise. Peering around the corner, Coulson isn't quite sure what to make of what he sees.

Stark and Pepper Potts are yelling at one another, the former pacing around the lab picking up everything in sight then placing it back down, and the latter sitting demurely in what looks like a slightly uncomfortable chair.

Miss Lewis is laying across the lab's lone sofa, head propped up on Dr. Foster's lap as she shares a Skype call with...three robots? Dr. Foster seems to be half-asleep, reaching with one hand to pet Miss Lewis's hair, the other patting a very confused looking Fen.

When the yelling tones down for a moment and a very familiar British voice pours from the laptop's speakers, Coulson freezes.

No...

Miss Lewis' proficiency with machinery...

Please no...

Her pet robot...

I will retire. I swear.

The same dark hair, same shape the eyes.

Barton will need a new handler...

Stark's sudden presence, with Miss Potts at his side...

"Holy shit."

The room goes deathly silent, and even the robots on the Skype call freeze at his declaration. Each member snaps their heads around, Miss Lewis and Dr. Foster with quiet groans.

He meets each of their eyes, begging them to tell him that what he is about to say is wrong, a hallucination.

"Miss Lewis, you're a Stark."

"JARVIS, protocol Alpha, everything that isn't you gets shut down, five miles."

"Of course, Sir."

Coulson turns to look out the nearest window, watching as whatever electricity remains in the town shuts off. Pulling out his phone, he notices it is deactivated as well, and won't be turned on manually. He raises an eyebrow at Stark, who meets his inquisitive gaze with his dead one.

"You and I should really have a discussion about just what your AI is capable of, Mr. Stark."

"You know damn well that's not what we're going to be talking about right now, Agent."

Coulson takes a closer look at the man, the father, in front of him. Stark's usual nonchalance is completely gone, replaced by a cold paternal rage, daring Coulson to try to harm his child.

He raises his hands in a sign of surrender, showing that he means no harm. Moving slowly as not to startle Stark, whose gaze keeps shifting to the briefcase on the coffee table, he makes his way to sit in an office chair next to the sofa. Coulson knows that the case holds one of the Iron Man suits, and would prefer that Stark not make use of it right now.

"I'm not here as your enemy, Stark." He looks to Miss Potts, because if Coulson knows anything, is that she can be the logical and reasonable one here.

"You're SHIELD, you kept a cure from me as I was dying, so forgive me if I don't quite believe you when you now have knowledge of my kid. I won't gamble with her safety, Agent, so tell me why I should trust you."

There were only two times that Coulson can remember ever being truly scared. The first time was when he met Former Director Peggy Carter, back when he was in SHIELD's Academy. The second, meeting the current Director Nicholas Fury as a Junior Agent. This encounter with Tony Stark? Coulson has just found his third terrifying moment.

He looked to his left, taking in Miss Lewis...Stark? Taking in Miss Darcy. She was fairly good at keeping her emotions off her face, but her eyes gave her away. Her bright blue eyes were wide with anxiety and fear. They shone with just the hint of tears, darting wildly between him, her father, Miss Potts, and Foster. This is her family, Coulson realized, And she's scared I'm going to take it away.

SHIELD protocol required him to call something like this in. When an Asset as important as Stark had something this valuable to them, SHIELD wanted to know. They could protect it if needed, or use it as leverage if an Asset turned on the organization.

Coulson couldn't do that to Darcy. He knew what he had to do.

He removed his comm, phone, pager, and every other device and weapon he had. It was slow going, but Coulson wanted to make sure Stark didn't get trigger happy. After he stripped all hidden items from his person, and never having felt more naked in his life, Coulson took the communication devices and crushed them beneath the heels of his boots. Once all that was left was shattered glass and bent metal, he sat back against his chair, hands to the side, vulnerable.

Meeting Stark's eyes, he let every ounce of sincerity bleed through the words as he spoke.

"Let me help. Tell me how I can protect your daughter, Tony."

Pepper was deep in thought as she curled into Tony's side. They were back in their private jet and headed for the Tower in New York, having left Darcy with Jane back in New Mexico.

She smiled as she thought of the two, happy that they had found such closeness with one another. Darcy was finally gaining the independence she didn't gain fully as an adolescent, and she was finding her place in the world. Her loyalty to Jane was fierce and unstoppable, and it made Pepper proud.

It also reminded her of Tony's own shade of loyalty. The apple certainly doesn't fall far from the tree.

She stifled a yawn by turning her face into Tony's chest, feeling the cool metal of the arc reactor under her lips through his shirt. Tony let out a snore as she shifted, his head bent back against the seat at an angle that was surely going to be hurting him later.

Pepper was exhausted as well, but couldn't force her eyes to close. The last few days had been trying, and her body wouldn't let her shake off the nerves.

After watching the view of the battle with the Destroyer through Fen's feed to Darcy's mind, Pepper thought she'd never be able to let Darcy go. They'd almost lost her. But they wouldn't do that to their daughter.

Like her father, Darcy was fierce with her love of others, bringing them into her arms and using herself as a shield to protect them, no matter what it would cost her. Though she was terrified as she watched, Pepper had to admit to herself that Darcy was beautiful as she fought, graceful and lethal. She was a goddess in her fury, a warrior. Pepper never wanted that for Darcy, but it seemed as if the world was determined to bring danger to her front door. And Darcy would always let it in if it meant it kept her family out of harm's way.

Having to rehash Tony's destructive six months was painful, like reliving Tony's abduction in Afghanistan. Darcy had raged and sobbed, demanding to know why her dad didn't let her know, didn't let her at least try to help. It broke Pepper's heart, and she and Jane held each other's hands as they watched the father-daughter duo break down in each other's arms.

Phil threw a wrench into that progress. When he had stumbled in, they were in the middle of arguing about what type of safety protocols were needed now that there where honest to god aliens that Darcy was friends with, that Jane's research would now be the target of some very dangerous people.

Pepper may have cried some more at Phil's declaration that he wanted to help, vowing to keep Darcy from SHIELD at all costs. He said he trusted Agents Barton and Romanoff with his life, and would have them look after Darcy whenever they were able if she was in a dangerous situation. He wouldn't tell them the full details, of course, but assured them that they would take his word as law and aid Darcy in hiding from the big-brother organization.

Together, the family (which now included Jane) decided that Coulson, in order to better protect Darcy, should be brought in on her abilities. Pepper and Darcy trusted him, their instincts telling them that hecould be trusted, and he was a good man. Jane wholeheartedly agreed, Tony, a bit more reluctantly. JARVIS did the most extensive background check she had ever seen, tearing through SHIELD without even leaving a trail so he could get all the information on Phil. Once he was done, JARVIS agreed that Phil was trustworthy enough to look after his sister.

New secured lines of communication, protocols, codewords and phrases were all established, tangling the connecting threads between them all, so that if anyone truly looked too closely they would get lost in the web they had spun. Pepper was overwhelmed and awed by what they had created. They even called in Logan so he could be convinced that Phil was a friendly. After a private discussion with Darcy on the phone, Logan said he would add him to his list of allies.

There was so much in the air now. Something big was brewing within SHIELD, Darcy was going to go globe-trotting with her best friend to find space anomalies, and Pepper and Tony were navigating this new relationship between them. But they made sure Darcy, and by extension Jane, was safe.

Our baby girl is safe, and she's a warrior in her own right. I believe in Darcy